Elevator car with elements combining both structural and wiring housing functions

ABSTRACT

An elevator car in which the junction box and wiring raceways for the electrical conductors are integral with horizontal and vertical structural members.

United States Patent Gibson [54] ELEVATOR CAR WITH ELEMENTS COMBININGBOTH STRUCTURAL AND WIRING HOUSING FUNCTIONS George William Gibson, OldBridge, NJ.

Inventor:

Filed: Aug. 31, 1971 Appl. No.: 176,634

[ 51 Dec. 26, 1972 References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 3,342,2889/1967 Vogel ..l87/1R Primary Examiner-Harvey C. Hornsby Attorney-JosephL. Sharon et al.

571 ABSTRACT An elevator car in which the junction box and wiringraceways for the electrical conductors are integral U.S. Cl. ..I87/l Rwith horizontal d i l structural members. Int. Cl. ..B66b 9/00 Field ofSearch ..l87/1, 52, 56 5 Claims, 5 Drawing Figures r r 49 T I "l8 I7 I?28 Zia I \'2 2? 47 PATENTEDumzs I972 Q IMMW ELEVATOR CAR WITH ELEMENTSCOMBINING BOTH STRUCTURAL AND WIRING HOUSING FUNCTIONS This inventionrelates to elevators and particularly to an arrangement for an elevatorcar in which structural elements of the car perform combined functionsincluding their primary function of serving as a load sustaining elementand a secondaryfunction of serving as a housing for the-electricalconductors of the car.

Elevator cars require electrical conductors for many items includinglighting fixtures, as well as other electrical operating devices andequipmentLThe lighting fixture usually requires wiring to terminate inthe ceiling of the passenger compartment of the car. The other devicesand equipment are mounted at many various locations on the car and oneor more electrical conductors must be distributed to each such location.Y

' A traveling cable suspended from the bottom of the car provides theconnection between the conductors on the car andrelated equipmentseparate fromthe car. This cable usually terminates in a junction boxwhich is mounted under the car platform and serves no purpose other thanas an electrical housing unit. In this box are a plurality of terminalblocks to which the wires of the traveling cable are connected. This boxis typically located behind the toe guard plate and the entire plateusually requires removal in order to reach the .wiring in the box. Theelectrical conductors for the top of the car are distributed from thisbox through pipe risers, or conduit sections, which are separate fromthe car structure. These risers increase the weight of the car and as aresult a heavier counterweight must be provided. Moreover, theseseparate pipe risers are affixed to the car at the job site and theirprovision, thus, is a part of the installation costs.

One suggestion for eliminating the need for the installation of piperisers at job sites proposed to distribute conductors to the top of thecar through a vertical wiring trough which was integral with the caroperating panel box or through a separate vertical wiring troughexternal of the passenger compartment of the car. In both thesearrangements a wiring trough was substituted for the pipe risers.Neither arrangement proposed that a vertical structural element of thecar be employed to perform a dual function and distribute the conductorsto the top of the car.

It is an object of this invention to decrease the cost of installingelevator cars.

It is another object to decrease the weight of elevator cars.

One of the features of the invention is the elimination of the separatejunction box and the use of the space in a structural channel member asthe junction box. This and the use of vertical structural members aswiring ducts or raceways to distribute electrical conductors from thejunction box to the top of the car attains the foregoing objects becausethe need for separate pipe risers is avoided thereby eliminating thecost of installing them, as well as their weight.

Other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be evidentto those skilled in the art from the foregoing and from the followingdescription when considered in conjunction with the appended claims andthe accompanying drawing, in which FIG. 1 is a simplified partiallyexploded schematic of an elevator car constructed in accordance with theinvention with parts broken away;

FIG. 2 is a simplified sectional view of part of the elevator car ofFIG. I; v

FIG. 3 is a simplified partially exploded schematic of another part ofthe elevator car of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a schematicof a vertical upright support of the elevator carof FIG. 1;

' FIG. 5 is a sectional view of the part of the elevator car of FIG. 3taken along line 5-5.

Referring now to FIG. 1 of the drawing, an elevator car frame, or sling,comprises plank beams 12, vertical members 13 and crosshead beams 14.Resiliently supported thereby on plank beams 12 is a passengercompartment comprising platform 15, front wall 16, rear wall 17 and sidewalls 18. The resilient mounting of. the passenger compartment may beprovided in any well known manner. One such employs rubber blocks 19(FIG. 2) between platform 15 and. platform supporting frame 20 which ismounted directly on plank beams 12 and a plurality of transversechannels 21' (FIG. 2).

A slidable door assembly 22 is supported by its rollers 23 on door track24in typical fashion. This assembly providesa closure for the openinginfront wall 16 of the passenger compartment.

Suitably affixed to the front of platform 15, such as by welding, is athreshold channel beam 25. The side walls of this beam are located oneabove the other and its channel is disposed frontwardly. Top wall 26(FIG; 2) serves as the support for platform threshold plate 27 which issuitably fastened thereto so as to be disposed in front of the openingin front wall 16.

Channel 25 extends across the width of the elevator car to meet uprightsupport members 28 at each comer of the front of the car. Each ofsupports 28 extends upwardly in its respective corner to a positionabove the roof of the passenger compartment. Each is suitably affixedtothe car sling as by being bolted to respective platform side braces 29which themselves, in typical fashion, are bolted to platform supportframe 20 and vertical members 13. In addition, uprights 28 are alsoaffixed to the car sling at their upper ends as by being fastened insuitable manner to support angles 34 which are bolted to verticalmembers 13. Uprights 28 provide support for door track 24 and formounting frame 32 upon which is mounted motor controlled door operatingdevice 33 which moves door assembly 22 between its opened and closedpositions. Strap 35 connected between mounting frame 32 and track 24supports the latter at its midpoint.

A front wall comprising plates 37, 38 and 39 is removably fastened tochannel 25, in any satisfactory manner, as is toe guard plate 40. Thisremovable front wall together with channel 25 comprise a lowerhorizontal wiring duct for the elevator car. Fastened to the back wallof channel 25 in any suitable manner are mounting bars 42 (FIG. 2). Uponthese bars are mounted a plurality of terminal blocks 43 (FIGS. 1 and2). In accordance with the invention the location of terminal blocks 43is limited to that portionof channel 25 which is disposed under theopening in front wall 16 of the passenger compartment. A separateportion of the plate means comprising the front wall of the lowerhorizontal wiring duct, namely plate 38, covers this portion of thechannel so that all the terminal blocks are rendered accessible byunfastening plate 38.

As can be seen from FIGS. land 2, traveling cables 45 containing wiresfor connection between electrical equipment'on the elevator car andother such equipment separate from the ear is suspended in typicalfashion from a cable hanger 46 mounted under car platform -15. Travelingcables45 afterbeing connected to cable hanger 46, which provides thephysical support therefor, are inserted through apertures provided forthem in the bottom wall of channel 25. The separate wires in the cablesare then connected to terminal blocks-43 from which a plurality ofelectrical conductors are distributed to other portions of the elevatorcar. Thus channel 25 with its removable front, wall fastened theretocomprises a junction box, as well as a lower horizontal wiring duct, forhousing the electrical conductors for the elevator car. I

In order to distributethe electrical conductors to other areas of thecar, primarily the top thereof, upright supports 28 are hollow membersand include an extended footportion 47 with removable cover 48.- Thesection of each foot portion 47 which extends transversely of theelevator car is loosely fitted into channel 25v to permit relativemotion therebetween. This provides a floating connection between thelower horizontal wiring duct which moves with elevator platform 15 inrelationship to the car sling and the vertical wiring ducts in uprights28 which are affixed to the car sling. The vertical ducts distribute theelectrical conductors they receive from the lower horizontal duct to thefront corners of the top of the elevator car above the roof of itspassenger compartment. Each of these vertical ducts terminates in anupper horizontal wiring duct formed in the door operating devicemountingv frame 32. These upper horizontal ducts may take various formsbut in the disclosed constructed embodiment they include a partialenclosure 49 (FIG. 3) which is secured to the upper leg 50 (FIGS. 3 andof the Z-shaped member of the mounting frame. When so secured, thispartial enclosure houses and protects the electrical conductors carriedby its associated upright member 28 after they leave the upright memberat the top of the car; From each partial enclosure 49 the electricalconductors pass through an aperture formed in upper leg 50 of the Z-shaped member of the mounting frame into the rest of the associatedupper horizontal duct for distribution from the front corner at whichthe conductors arrive at the top of the car toward the opposite frontcorner.

in addition to partial enclosure 49 and that portion of upper leg 50which cooperates with it, each of the upper horizontal wiring ductscomprises an elongated horizontal plate 51 (FIGS. 3 and 5 which is ofsubstantially the same width as upper leg 50 of the Z-shaped member ofmounting frame 32. To complete these ducts they are enclosed withsuitable end plates 52 mounted thereon in any satisfactory manner andeither blank cover plates 53 or knockout plates 54. Conduit is connectedto the various knockout plates for distribution of the electricalconductors toward the rear of the car. It also may be used to provideconnection between the two wiring ducts formed in the mounting frame ifso desired.

From the foregoingit can be seen. that an elevator car constructed inaccordance with the foregoing disclosure includes elements which combinestructural functions with electrical conductor housing functions.In'this way the need for separate wiring ducts constructed entirely ofmembers which perform no structural function has been avoided. As aresult, elevator cars constructed according to the disclosed embodimentare lighter in weight than those constructed with such separate wiringducts.

Various modifications to the above disclosed arrangement are possiblewithout departing from the spirit of the invention. The precedingdisclosure, therefore, is to be considered illustrative only and notlimiting in any sense. r

What is claimed is:

1. In an elevator car having a plurality of electrical conductors andapassenger compartment including a platform,.four walls and a roof,aslidable door assembly closing an opening in the front wall of saidcompartment, a track supporting said door: assembly, a motor controlleddoor operating device for moving said door assembly between open andclosed positions, a mounting frame supporting said door operatingdevice, a car sling supporting said passenger compartment, said platformbeing resiliently supported by said sling, a threshold plate for saidplatform in front of said opening, a threshold channel having a top, abottom and a back 'wall, said channel being affixed to said platform,supporting said threshold plate on its top wall portion andextendingacross the front of said platform to at least one front comer thereof,an individual upright support extending upwardly from each of the twofront corners of said'platform affixed to said sling and extending abovethe roof of said passenger compartment, said upright supports providingsupport for said track and said mounting frame, the improvementincluding a front wall for said threshold channel removably fastened tosaid channel, said channel with said front wall connected theretocomprising a horizontal wiring duct for housing said electricalconductors, and that at least one of said upright supports is a hollowmember comprising a vertical wiring duct, said vertical wiring ductbeing loosely connected to said horizontal wiring duct permittingrelative motion therebe'tween, said vertical' wiring duct receiving atleast a portion of said electrical conductors from said horizontalwiring duct and distributing them to one front corner of the top of saidcar above the roof of said passenger compartment.

2. In an elevator car according to claim 1, wherein said removable wallportion includes plate means removably fastened to said thresholdchannel, a separately removable portion of said plate means coveringonly that portion of the channel which is disposed under said openingand wherein a'plurality of terminal blocks for connecting saidelectrical conductors thereto are mounted in saidchannel only in thatportion disposed under said opening whereby all terminal blocks arerendered accessible by unfastening said separately removable portion ofsaid plate means from said channel.

3. in an elevator car according to claim 2, wherein said door operatingdevice mounting frame includes a top of car horizontally disposed wiringduct connected to .said vertical wiring duct for receiving theelectrical conductors carried thereby and distributing them from the onefront comer of the top of said car toward the other front cornerthereof.

5. In an elevator car according to claim 4, wherein said door operatingdevice mounting frame includes a top of car horizontally disposed wiringduct connected to each of said vertical wiring ducts for receiving theelectrical conductors carried thereby and distributing them from therespective front corner at which they arrive at the top of said cartoward the opposite front corner.

1. In an elevator car having a plurality of electrical conductors and apassenger compartment including a platform, four walls and a roof, aslidable door assembly closing an opening in the front wall of saidcompartment, a track supporting said door assembly, a motor controlleddoor operating device for moving said door assembly between open andclosed positions, a mounting frame supporting said door operatingdevice, a car sling supporting said passenger compartment, said platformbeing resiliently supported by said sling, a threshold plate for saidplatform in front of said opening, a threshold channel having a top, abottom and a back wall, said channel being affixed to said platform,supporting said threshold plate on its top wall portion and extendingacross the fRont of said platform to at least one front corner thereof,an individual upright support extending upwardly from each of the twofront corners of said platform affixed to said sling and extending abovethe roof of said passenger compartment, said upright supports providingsupport for said track and said mounting frame, the improvementincluding a front wall for said threshold channel removably fastened tosaid channel, said channel with said front wall connected theretocomprising a horizontal wiring duct for housing said electricalconductors, and that at least one of said upright supports is a hollowmember comprising a vertical wiring duct, said vertical wiring ductbeing loosely connected to said horizontal wiring duct permittingrelative motion therebetween, said vertical wiring duct receiving atleast a portion of said electrical conductors from said horizontalwiring duct and distributing them to one front corner of the top of saidcar above the roof of said passenger compartment.
 2. In an elevator caraccording to claim 1, wherein said removable wall portion includes platemeans removably fastened to said threshold channel, a separatelyremovable portion of said plate means covering only that portion of thechannel which is disposed under said opening and wherein a plurality ofterminal blocks for connecting said electrical conductors thereto aremounted in said channel only in that portion disposed under said openingwhereby all terminal blocks are rendered accessible by unfastening saidseparately removable portion of said plate means from said channel. 3.In an elevator car according to claim 2, wherein said door operatingdevice mounting frame includes a top of car horizontally disposed wiringduct connected to said vertical wiring duct for receiving the electricalconductors carried thereby and distributing them from the one frontcorner of the top of said car toward the other front corner thereof. 4.In an elevator car according to claim 3, wherein said channel extendsacross the front of said platform to each front corner thereof, and bothsaid upright supports are hollow members comprising vertical wiringducts, each connected to said horizontal wiring duct for receivingseparate portions of said electrical conductors and distributing them toboth front corners of the top of said car above the roof of saidpassenger compartment.
 5. In an elevator car according to claim 4,wherein said door operating device mounting frame includes a top of carhorizontally disposed wiring duct connected to each of said verticalwiring ducts for receiving the electrical conductors carried thereby anddistributing them from the respective front corner at which they arriveat the top of said car toward the opposite front corner.